


Lover

by fransunflower



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Awkward Romance, Babies, Domestic Fluff, Drama & Romance, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Pregnancy, Romance, Slow Romance, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:47:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27992493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fransunflower/pseuds/fransunflower
Summary: Stories about C.J. Cregg told through Taylor Swift's album "Lover".
Relationships: Danny Concannon/C. J. Cregg
Comments: 11
Kudos: 15





	1. I Forgot That You Existed

**Author's Note:**

> Hello lovely people. This is a project I'm really excited about. Each one shot will be based on one of Taylor Swift's songs from her album "Lover". They will mostly be C.J./Danny related.  
> All of these are for Elena. Much love to you, darling.

They were having lunch in C.J.’s office, when Carol knocked on the door.

“Come in,” C.J. said, still laughing at something Danny had just told her. Carol opened the door and leaned against the frame.

“There’s someone here to see you,” she said.

“Me?” C.J. asked, lowering her fork. “I thought I had an hour until the next meeting.” She gazed across at Danny apologetically.

“Yeah. His name is Evan,” Carol informed her, looking just as confused as C.J. was feeling. “He doesn’t have an appointment.”

“Who’s Evan?"

“He said, you’d know who he was.” Carol shrugged.

“I honestly don’t know who you’re talking about,” C.J. said.

“Should I let him in?” Carol asked.

“Sure, why not?” C.J. put her takeout box down on her coffee table and brushed a few crumbs off her blouse. Carol left the room and came in seconds later, followed by a man, maybe in his late forties, wearing jeans and a leather jacket. His hair was messy and he was holding a motorcycle helmet in his right hand. C.J. and Danny shared confused looks and Carol stayed in the doorway, not wanting to miss one second of this.

“Claud,” he said as if they were old friends. C.J. looked him up and down.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but who are you?” C.J. asked and stood up.

“Claud, it’s me,” the man said, sounding slightly offended. “Evan.”

“Evan?” C.J. repeated. Danny looked like he was about to burst into laughter at the poor man’s desperation.

“Evan Nelson,” he said. C.J. gasped, her hand flying up to cover her mouth.

“Evan!” she exclaimed. “Of course. I don’t know how I didn’t recognize you, you haven’t changed a bit.” Evan laughed a little. C.J. reached out her hand just as he went in for a hug. After an awkward pause, they silently decided on a handshake. “Oh, Even, I’m sorry, this is Danny Concannon. My husband,” C.J. said, gesturing towards Danny on the couch. Danny stood up and offered Evan his hand.

“How you doing?” Danny asked. Evan glanced from Danny to C.J. and back again.

“Husband?” he repeated, slightly surprised as he retrieved his hand.

“Yeah. Husband,” C.J. said, subconsciously moving closer to Danny.

“I see.” C.J. smirked at Carol who stood quietly in the corner.

“Danny, this is Evan Nelson. One of my _many_ ex-boyfriends.”

“Nice to meet’cha.” Danny did not seem at all pleased to meet him and C.J. couldn’t help smile.

“Carol, could you get someone to bring us some coffee?” C.J. asked, trying hard not to laugh at the awkwardness of the whole situation.

“Sure,” Carol said and disappeared.

“Have a seat,” C.J. offered then and gestured at the chair opposite the sofa where she and Danny had been sitting seconds ago.

“Thank you,” Evan said and flopped himself down into the chair. C.J. made herself comfortable next to Danny, who gently placed a hand on her knee, giving it a gentle squeeze.

“What are you doing here?” C.J. asked. She smiled over the edge of her cup.

“I was in the neighborhood and read somewhere that you worked for the Hollis Foundation, so I thought I’d stop by. See how you’re doing.” Evan seemed highly uncomfortable as he shifted around in his chair. C.J. found it amusing how he knew where she worked but not that she had gotten married. Or maybe he did and was just being a dick. That seemed more likely.

“I’m good. I’m doing well. How’re you?”

“I’m great. Yeah.” He ran his hand through his hair, messing it up even more.

“You still your band?” C.J. wanted to know and judging by his clothes, she already knew the answer.

“Yep,” Evan replied. He sounded oddly proud though C.J. didn’t see why still being in the same mediocre rock band you’d been in since college was such a great achievement.

“Evan was in a band when we were in college,” C.J. explained to Danny. “He had an awful haircut and when he played guitar, it would fall into his face.” Danny laughed a little and Evan flashed her a small smile. Neither of them said anything for a while. Just when the silence seemed to be unbearable, Carol walked in with a tray and placed it in front of them on the coffee table. There were only two mugs and one glass filled with orange juice. C.J. thanked Carol before she left and took the glass.

“No coffee?” Evan asked. “You used to be unable to get out of bed before having had your daily caffeine.” He chuckled at his own joke. He really hadn’t changed at all.

“Danny read somewhere that pregnant women shouldn’t drink coffee because it’s not good for the baby,” C.J. explained. Evan practically choked on his coffee and put it back down on the table, as he gasped for air.

“Pregnant?” he repeated, his voice raspy.

“Yeah. You are familiar with the concept, I assume,” C.J. said and took Danny’s hand, intertwining her fingers with his.

“I’ve heard of it, yes.” C.J. could see Danny try to suppress laughter out of the corner of her eye. Evan’s face had turned crimson, even his ears seemed to be burning. C.J. purposefully stepped on Danny’s toes when her husband let out a tiny giggle. “So… you’re pregnant? That’s great. That’s amazing. Really amazing. Congratulations. Honestly. Wow. I didn’t expect that. But yeah… that’s… great. Really great. Yeah.” Now C.J. was the one who needed to fight the urge to burst into laughter. She couldn’t for the life of her remember what she had ever seen in this man let alone why she had ever bothered wasting any tears on him. Evan put his hands on his knees before standing up. “Well, I better get going.” Danny stood as well, pulling C.J. up with him.

“Thanks for stopping by,” C.J. said as she extended her hand. Evan took it, still a little startled. He shook Danny’s hand as well although he didn’t offer him the same smile he gave C.J..

“Nice to meet you,” Evan mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

“Yeah, you too,” Danny said, and C.J could tell he was quite amused by the whole situation.

“See you, C.J..”

“Sure,” C.J. said.

As soon as Evan had left the room, C.J. burst into laughter. “What was that?”

“That was… awkward,” Danny agreed, chuckling to himself.

“To say the least.”

“You dated that guy?” Danny asked in disbelief.

“Let’s not even go there,” C.J. said and sat down on the sofa again. She took a sip from her orange juice. “I don’t even know why he came.”

“Come on, he wanted to ask you out,” Danny stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. C.J. rolled her eyes at him and shook her head.

“He did not.”

“He so did,” Danny insisted.

“He couldn’t possibly have thought that I was still single.”

“He’s still single.”

“I’d say,” C.J. laughed. “He looks _exactly_ like he did in college. That jacket? I got that for him. Not even his hair has changed.”

“And he’s still in a band.”

“It wasn’t a very good band,” C.J. added as Danny sat down next to her.

“I can’t believe you dated him,” Danny laughed.

“I honestly can’t believe it either,” C.J. admitted, as she stared into thin air, lost in though. Danny nudged her shoulder.

“Hey,” he said softly. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” C.J. turned her head and smiled at her husband. “I just remembered something.”

“What?” Danny asked and titled his head like he always did when she told a story.

“It’s nothing.” C.J. waved her hand, dismissing him.

“It’s not nothing,” Danny insisted. C.J. gently stroked Danny’s cheek while she talked.

“It’s really not that interesting,” she assured him.

“Tell me anyways.” C.J. smiled and took a deep breath.

“Evan cheated on me,” she said calmly. “That’s why we broke up. One day, I went over to his apartment to surprise him and I found him with a girl from the band. It broke my heart. I was devastated. And like any emotionally unstable college student, I blamed myself.” She was only half kidding when she said this. Those had been some of the toughest years of her life. Her father had gotten remarried, she was all alone in a strange city where she didn’t know anyone, and her brothers were too busy to answer her phone calls. “I spent hours wondering what was wrong with me. Why I wasn’t enough for him. It felt like the end of the world.” Danny gently squeezed her hand. “And as if that wasn’t enough, he went on to make my life a living hell. He talked shit about me, made fun of my clothes, told everyone I was bad in bed and that’s why he did it… but then today… I didn’t even know who he was,” C.J. laughed. “I forgot that he existed.” C.J. shook her head and looked up at Danny. “I used to be so scared of the same thing happening again. I didn’t trust anyone for years. I thought there was something wrong with me. I thought if he could do it, what would stop anyone else from doing it?” They were silent for a moment.

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” Danny said, bringing her hand up to his lips and kissing it.

“It sucked. It really did. But I got over it. And now I’m here and I couldn’t care less about Evan Nelson.” 

“Just for the record,” Danny whispered, leaning closer to C.J.. “I think you’re great in bed.” C.J. slapped his arm.

“ _Danny!_ ” she shrieked, but there was a smile playing on her lips. “Be serious for once in your life, would you please?”

“No, sorry, can’t do.”

“Didn’t think so.” C.J. smirked before she moved her face closer to Danny’s, their lips meeting halfway.


	2. Cruel Summer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii I'm back with another Lover one shot. I hope you like this one. It takes place during the first Bartlet For America campaign. (This one's for Elena too by the way)

“Why won’t it work?!” C.J. yells as she hits the vending machine.

“Having a little trouble there, C.J.?” The voice makes C.J. jump.

“Jesus, Danny, you nearly gave me a heart attack.” She puts her hand on her chest and takes a deep breath. Danny leans against the vending machine.

“You did well today,” he tells her.

“It ate my money,” C.J. says, ignoring him.

“I’m sorry?”

“The machine. It ate my money.”

“I was talking about the briefing.”

“I know but the machine ate my money. I just wanted a bag of chips.” C.J. slams her hand into the glass of the vending machine. 

“Try kicking it,” Danny suggests. 

“What?”

“Try kicking it.”

C.J. does. The machine rocks back and forth but nothing happens. She kicks it again.

“Never mind,” she sighs.

“You did well today,” Danny says again.

“I’m sorry?”

“You did well today.”

C.J. looks him up and down.

“What’d you want?” she asks.

“Nothing?” Danny cocks his head and smiles up at her.

“Why are you being nice to me?”

“I’m always nice to you.”

“Danny, you ask annoying questions and you never leave me alone.”

Danny shakes his head and laughs a little. His hair looks nice today and he’s wearing a sweater she’s never seen before. It’s late and they’re the only two people left in the lobby. Everyone else must have gone to bed already. Or maybe they’re just hiding in their rooms. Or in most cases probably sleeping with someone they’ve only just met.

“C.J.…” 

“Danny…” She looks him in the eye and there’s a million things they’re not saying right now. A million things they’re not _doing_.

“You did well today,” Danny says again.

“Thank you.”

“So…” Danny takes a deep breath. “Got any plans?”

“At two o’clock in the morning?”

“Yeah.”

“No, I don’t have any plans.”

”Wanna do something?” He has that smirk on his face again and C.J. doesn’t know if she wants to smack him or kiss him.

“At two o’clock in the morning?”

“Yeah.”

“Sure.” C.J. gives the vending machine a final kick before following Danny through the lobby and to the elevators.

C.J. presses the button and it seems to take a lifetime for the elevator to arrive. When it finally does, they step inside and just stand there, awkwardly trying to avoid eye contact. The doors close but nothing happens. 

“C.J.?”

“Yeah?”

“You didn’t press anything.”

“Right.” C.J. turns and presses the number five. The elevator moves. Her hand brushes against Danny’s. She doesn’t pull it away. Her fingers find his and they intertwine. 

“C.J….” Before Danny can say anything else, C.J. whips her head around and pushes Danny up against the wall of the small elevator, her lips pressed against his. One of his hands finds its way to the small of her back, the other gently caresses her cheek. For a moment, everything just stops. And it’s just the two of them, pressed up against each other. Nothing else matters. Not the campaign, not their jobs, not the presidency, just them.

They break apart as the elevator goes _ding_ and the doors open. C.J. stands as far away from Danny as humanly possible in the tiny space and tries to catch her breath. Sam and Josh tumble into the elevator, both of them so in love with each other it’s painfully obvious to anyone but them. 

“Hey, C.J.,” Josh says, clearly very drunk. 

“Joshua. Samuel.” 

“You look good tonight, C.J.,” Sam says and looks her up and down. If this was anyone else, she’d give him a good smack around the head for eyeing her this way.

“Ey, watch your eyes, mister,” she tells him instead.

“Yeah, watch your eyes, mister,” Josh agrees. 

The doors close and they move again. C.J. catches Danny’s eye and just smiles. 

“Uhm, C.J., what’re you making eyes at Concannon for?” Josh shouts and C.J. quickly looks away.

“I’m sorry?” she laughs. The doors open and all four of them step outside.

“You were all like-“ Josh draws hearts in the air in front of his eyes. C.J. playfully hits his shoulder.

“I was not,” she insists. She really was though.

“Sam, what’d you think?” Josh asks and turns around a little too quickly. Sam catches him before he falls to the floor.

“I think- I think I should stay out of this because I feel like I will get in trouble either way,” Sam says. C.J. gives him a thumbs up and Josh just rolls his eyes.

“Why’s he here then?” he wants to know and points at Danny.

“What’d you mean?” C.J. asks.

“The press isn’t on this floor.”

C.J. can practically _feel_ her cheeks turn pink.

“Oh, I- uhm- Danny wanted to show me something.”

“In your room?” Josh raises both his eyebrows.

“Yeah.”

“Okay.” Josh shrugs and starts walking towards his own room, his arm still around Sam’s shoulder. C.J. and Danny just stand there for a moment, waiting until they’re alone.

“Well…,” C.J. says. 

“That was…”

“Weird?” she suggests.

“Yeah. Are they…?”

“Together?”

“Yeah.”

“Honestly? I have no idea. They should be. They’re kinda cute together. But half the time I don’t know what’s going on in Josh’s head and honestly, I don’t go out of my way to find out,” C.J. says.

“They seem like they’d make a nice couple. Josh could use a bit of Sam’s… well… Samness.”

C.J. can’t help but laugh at that.

“I think everyone could use a bit of Sam’s Samness.”

Danny nods. He looks down at the floor, tracing the carpet with the tip of his shoe.

“Nice save, by the way,” he says as he slowly makes his way over to her. C.J. lifts one eyebrow. "Very smooth."

“Thanks. And _you_. I particularly liked the part where you said nothing at all. That was extremely helpful.”

Danny’s arms wrap around her waist.

“You’re very welcome,” he whispers before his lips meet hers. C.J. pulls him closer, trying to absorb every last bit of him all at once. Her hands run up his shoulders and through his had as he traces the small of her back with his fingers. C.J.’s the one to break the kiss. She leans her forehead against Danny’s and takes a deep breath.

“You wanna… come inside? That sounded wrong. That’s not what I meant. I mean- I guess- If you want to- but- that’s not- that’s not what I wanted to say. What I was actually asking was if you’d like to come into my room not if you wanted to have sex with me. Which- I mean- that would be fine too. I wouldn’t _mind_. It's not like we haven't done it before. It just wasn’t what I was asking-“

“C.J.,” Danny interrupts. Her head snaps up.

“Yeah?”

“Are you done?”

“Yeah.”

“I would love to go into your _room_.”

“Okay.” C.J. turns around and makes her way to her door, Danny right behind her. She unlocks the it and steps inside. Danny closes it behind them, and they just stand there for a moment. C.J. is suddenly very aware of how messy her room is; with briefing folders scattered across the desk, clothes on the floor, and various packs of goldfish crackers on her nightstand. But when she looks over at Danny to see his reaction, he’s only looking at her.

“What’re you looking at?”

Danny frowns.

“You. I thought that was fairly obvious.”

C.J. rolls her eyes at him.

“Do you want a drink?” She walks over to the mini bar and sticks her head inside.

“It’s like fifty dollars for some peanuts,” Danny says as he sits down on the edge of her bed. C.J. shrugs.

“Ah, well.” She hands him a beer and sits down next to him. They’re silent. “We shouldn’t be doing this,” C.J. says.

“Drinking beer at two o’clock in the morning?”

C.J. smacks his arm.

“This. Us. We shouldn’t be doing this.”

“You didn’t have a problem with it last night.”

“Danny…”

“You’re right, I’m sorry.”

C.J. looks up at the ceiling. She wants this to work so badly. She wants Danny to be the person she comes home to at the end of a long day, to be the one she can complain to when things aren’t going well, to be the person to hold her at night before she falls asleep. But he can’t be any of those things. Not with the jobs they have.

“I think you’re scared,” Danny says then, not looking at her.

“I’m not scared,” C.J. insists.

“I think you’re scared we’ll screw this up even though we’re not even trying to build something _to screw up._ ”

“I’m not scared,” she repeats. But she is. Deep down. Because if she’s being completely honest with herself, she doesn’t want to see Danny go.

“Okay.” They’re quiet again. Neither of them says a word. C.J. thinks back to last week where Danny had to call her a cab because she had gotten so drunk with the boys, she couldn’t remember what hotel she was staying at. She remembers her head on Danny’s shoulder, crying into his shirt for god knows what reason. She’d told him she loved him then, whispered it, or maybe that was a dream. She knows he held her hair back when she threw up, _knows_ he tucked her in and stayed with her all night in case she needed anything but she can't remember if she actually told him how she feels. 

“C.J….,” Danny says. She turns to look at him. She knows what he’s about to do, can see it in his eyes.

“Don’t…”

“C.J.. I love you.” Three simple words but they completely take her breath away. For once in her life, C.J. Cregg doesn’t know what to say.

“Danny…”

“I do, C.J.. I love you.”

“No, you don’t,” she tells him and gets up.

“C.J., I love you. Whether you are capable of letting me or not. I’m in love with you.”

Tears form in her eyes and C.J. quickly blinks them away.

“Why are you upset?” Danny asks. C.J. spins around so she’s facing him.

“Because I love you, you idiot,” she yells. “But this- us- it won’t work.”

“Why not?” Danny’s on his feet now too, standing in front of her.

“Because… there’re rules.”

“Rules?” Danny frowns.

“Yes.”

“What kind of rules?”

“Well, I don’t know. Just- rules. Okay? There’re rules.” C.J. crosses her arms in front of her chest. “And I can’t love you. And… and you can’t love me. Because… we’re not very good at keeping secrets around here.”

Danny takes a step towards C.J. and takes her hands in his.

“Claudia Jean?”

C.J. lifts her head to look at him.

“I love you. Okay? We’ll figure out everything else. All of it.” Danny gently squeezes her hands and pulls her a little closer. C.J. can’t stop a giant smile from spreading on her face.

“We’ve got love,” she says.

“Yeah.”

“And we’ll steal the rest?”

“You bet your ass.”

C.J. laughs and pulls him a little closer. Their lips meet halfway and C.J. wraps her arms around his neck as she pulls him down towards the mattress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, you made it to the end. I hope you enjoyed this. Let me know what you thought :)


End file.
